Sunshine and Roses
by Anime Ayumu
Summary: Branded by those who raped her, Annabel begins her freshman year at Ouran in the middle of the year after getting out of counceling. With her severe fear of men and the making of unlikely friends, the Host Club will learn that some secrets are kept for a reason...especially Kyoya ADOPTED FROM Ca-ru-te-ru.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This is horrible. I really should be working on Witch Meister, but nooooo i have to go and start another fic! Whatever, this little number, Sunshine and Roses, was adopted from Ca-ru-te-ru, seeing as how she (he?) had no more motivation to write it anymore. Shame, too, I liked where it was going. Anyways, I'm in charge of this fic now, which makes me so happy! XDD

I'm picking up right where she (he?) left off, so this is chapter 4. For the first three chappies, go to Ca-ru-te-ru's profile. I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: i do not own Ouran High School Host Club, and I can't even say i own this plot! I only own my own ideas and plot twists.

* * *

"So," Iyako set a tray of tea in front of me.

"So?"

"What's your excuse?"

I picked up one of the cups and stirred some sugar cubes into it. The cubes made a plopping noise as they plunged into the hot liquid.

"Well, you see...I encountered some...ahem, boys today." I used to stutter and freeze up at the mention of the opposite sex, but after a while, I got over it. But I was still a little wary of it.

Iyako raise her eyebrows. "Is that so?" I could tell she was trying to keep calm, seeing as how she was the therapist, but I could tell she was worried sick.

I nodded. "Yeah... I wasn't really paying attention and accidentally ran into this one boy and got cake all over him."

"And how was he?" Pfft. More like "How did you react?"

I took a sip of my tea. "He was fine. Kinda cute. Like a little kid. He had a friend with him."

"Oh really? And him?" Translation: "Are you okay?"

I took a deep breath. "He...was..." What could I say? Scary? Intimidating? Probably strong? I couldn't say anything that wouldn't make Iyako worry. I could see his face. I could feel his arms pinning me against the wall.

"He was...h-he..."

I couldn't go on. Next thing I knew, my grip on the teacup had tightened that I was trembling. My pupils were shaking and my breath had quickened. What was wrong with me? I thought I had grown out of all of this, so why couldn't I bring myself to-

"Annabel?"

I looked up at Iyako. She had placed a hand on my knee and was staring at me with worried eyes. Not with ones of a person who had a PhD in Psychiatry, but with those of a truly caring person.

I smiled. "I'm fine. Just not really used to people my age yet." She winced at my response, but quickly recovered.

"Well then, as you were saying."

I put the tea down. "His friend was...something." I internally nodded at the vague word. "Anyways, the kid, Mitsukuni I think, asked me if I wanted to have cake with him. I said yes and he started pulling me to their club. But then you called and I had to leave."

"What kind of club are they a part of?"

I shrugged. "I dunno. Now that I think about it, we were by the music wing so maybe a music club?"

"Interesting..." Iyako's eyes kept flickering to her black notepad that sat on her desk a little ways away. When I started my sessions with her, my parents had requested that she take no sort of physical record of my state of mind. And that if she did, they be burned immediately after use. Iyako respected that. And that's what I loved about her. I knew that her notes were probably her one tool to study her patient and try to help them. Notes were sort of a therapist's bread and butter, if you will, and Iyako was no different. However, unlike most therapists, Iyako didn't take notes and study them like I was some scientific experiment. She studied me as a human being.

"Did they seem nice?" Iyako tried to seem calm and collected, like she wasn't going to scribble everything I had said down as soon as I left like she always did.

I shrugged. "I don't really know, I only spent a few minutes with them. But..."

She raised an eyebrow. "But?"

"I have a feeling I'll be running into them again tomorrow."

She sighed. "Well, all I can say is just to be careful. This might be too soon of an encounter for you to take on. After all, it-"

"I know!" I snapped, making her jolt. She still wasn't used to my random outbursts, but neither was I. I blinked. Then gave a sheepish smile. "Sorry. Don't worry. I'll be careful. I promise!"

~the next day~

I fidgeted nervously in the back seat of my limo. I had a feeling that I would run into those boys again, whether I wanted to or not. What was I going to do? I sighed. Maybe Iyako was right...

I groaned and fell onto the car seat, burying my face in a random throw pillow. Really? A throw pillow? In a car? I sighed again. Whatever.

"Um, Miss Annabel?" I looked up to meet the worried face of my driver looking back at me. "We're here."

I sat up and straightened my hair and smoothed out my skirt. Grabbing my school bag I slid out of the sleek vehicle.

"Thanks again!" I called as I dashed up to the front main entrance of the school.

The walk to Homeroom was rather uneventful, just a few hellos here and there to some nameless, faceless people that were there yesterday.

I passed the two redheads that I sit behind on the way to my seat. They each had an arm around a brunette kid who had an indifferent look on his face. Now that I got a better look, I realized that he was the boy from yesterday. The one who was talking about...alien space monkeys? Or was it vampire space monkeys?

I took my seat and stared out the large window to my left. The only good thing about this school is that they had huge-ass windows - perfect for daydreaming.

I traced every detail with my eyes. The way the clouds rolled lazily across the sky; the way the cherry blossom leaves seemed to float perfectly in the light breeze; the gentle trickling of the fountain with the awkwardest statue down below. Seriously, who puts a peeing boy fountain statue in a school courtyard?

Yep, I was sucked into my own perfect world of weirdness. That is, until I felt a pair of thin arms sling themselves around my shoulders and hot breath in my ear.

"Well what do we have here, brother?" a deep voice said in my right ear.

"I do believe we have a new kitten, brother," a higher, yet huskier, one replied in my left.

I froze. My shoulders tensed. My breath stopped. Thoughts swirled through my mind and I was only able to catch one word.

Shit

A finger found its way underneath my chin and tilted it upwards. My hazel eyes were met with glowing gold ones, the kind that reminded me of a cat. It was one of the redheads, a playful smirk plastered on his lips. But to me it was anything but playful. To me it was sinister and sadistic, one that would appear at the peak of my misery, for that was the only kind of smirk I had seen: an evil one.

"What is it?" he asked smoothly. "Cat got your tongue, doll?" I flinched at the last word.

_"You really are just like a doll. You're fourteen yet you give off the presence of a child. It's adorable."_

Before I could choke out a reply, another finger came and stole my face from the other, making me look in the other direction.

"Hikaru, you can't have her all to yourself. You have to share~" the higher voice whined. My head was jerked to the left only to meet a reflection of the face I had just turned away from.

"P-please..." I whimpered. _God I probably sound so pathetic right now._

The one on the left raised an eyebrow. "Yes, princess?" At that my body began shaking. My hands clutched my skirt until my knuckles turned white. My breath began to quicken rapidly. I knew what was happening. I was having a panic attack.

"Just...stop...please, I beg of you..."

I could see him. Looming right in front of me. His piercing violet eyes coming ever closer with each menacing step he took. A dark smile upon his face. I could feel his hands roaming my body, touching places that I'd rather kept virgin. Then I heard it. His laugh. Oh how it was poison to my ears. It wouldn't stop. It only got louder. I covered my ears. I shook my head. Anything to keep him away! Anything! Just stop it! STOP IT! Stop...please...

"Hikaru! Kaoru! What is the meaning of this?" A stern female voice snapped me from my daymare. My eyes flew open and I looked up to see Sensei Konijin staring the twins down with one of her famous glares.

"H-hey chill, Sensei!" Hikaru stuttered. "We were just playing a game with Annabel here, r-right Kaoru?"

"T-totally! Just a game! Nothing else!"

Sensei eyed me. "It seemed more like you were scaring her than anything else."

I gave her my best fake smile. "No it was all fun and games, Sensei, really!" I felt the twins' surprised gaze on me, but I ignored it. "We're all in the same Drama Class and we were just practicing a scene together." I kept lying smoothly. "You see, Hikaru and Kaoru play these two demons who come to earth in human forms and I am their next victim. We were rehearsing our first meeting, which is at night so naturally, I have to act scared. Pretty interesting, huh?"

Sensei seemed to relax a little bit, but she bought it. "Well, those two certainly fit the part if that's what you mean," she mumbled. "But if anything happens, just let me know." Translation: "If they do anything to you, just scream and I'll be there."

I smiled. "No worries!" She eyed the twins cautiously before turning back and heading to the desk. I slumped against my chair while the twins let out a sigh of relief.

"Hey thanks for covering for us back there," one twin said.

"Yeah, we would've been toast if it wasn't for you," the other agreed.

"Who said I did it for you?" I mumbled bitterly. But they heard it. And when they did they froze.

"Hey just what is that suppose to mean?" Twin #1 said, sounding a bit ticked off.

I looked down. Hunching my shoulders, I brought my body in closer to me and hugged myself with one arm. I turned away from them, giving them, quite literally, the cold shoulder and refused to look at them.

"Just leave me alone."

And as if on cue, the bell sounded, causing everyone to take their seats for our first lesson.

* * *

A/N: Yeah, no much really happened here, but I'm just seeing if people will like my version of this. I know a lot of people really liked it when Ca-ru-te-ru was writing it, and I understand if some people are disappointed that it's been transfered to a different writer. So in short, I'll only continue this based on popular demand. If you peeps like where I'm going with this, I'll keep going. If not, then oh well. So review people! I accept anynomous ones too!

Til next time! PEACE! X3


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Did everyone have a nice blackout? ^_^ Lolz i gotta say i was extremely bored without my precious stories, which is pretty sad. But hey! This is probably the fastest update I've done in a long time. But that's what happens when you spend almost half of your day in the waiting room of a random office for your brother's college counseling. Not to mention i seriously had to pee and couldn't find the stupid bathroom! Man, that is 4 hours of my life i will never get back...

Okay, i won't bore you with my sad life. Here's the next chappie! It's kinda boring, but I'm still trying to figure out the tiny details of everything. I have most of the plot planned out, but it's those little minor things that get me.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

* * *

Kaoru's POV

We didn't mean to scare her. We were simply trying out our new toy, however maybe we took it too far for once.

I blinked and loosened my grip on the girl when I felt her trembling against me. Hikaru did the same. We gave each other similar looks that said, "Damn, we messed up."

She looked seriously terrified. Her eyes were shut tightly and her hands were gripping the skirt of her dress like it was her lifeline. We let go of her completely when she clamped her hands over her ears and started shaking her head like she was trying to get something out of her mind.

"Just...stop...please, I beg of you..." When we heard her whimper, it was our turn to grow scared. I tensed and I didn't have to look at Hikaru to know that he did the same. Something we did obviously set off a trigger with this girl, and I could tell that this situation would not end well.

I wanted to reach out to her and try to calm her down, but I was pretty sure I'd make it worse. Hikaru was panicking, thinking that she'd burst into tears at any given moment and we'd be in a shitload of trouble for "displaying inappropriate behavior in class" or something like that.

"Hikaru! Kaoru! What is the meaning of this?" We whipped around at the same time to see Sensei Konijin glaring us down. We sent each other blink-and-you'll-miss-it glances, transferring thoughts to each other at lightning speed

"H-hey chill, Sensei!" Hikaru stuttered. "We were just playing a game with Annabel here, r-right Kaoru?" Another speedy glance told me to play along. I didn't need to be told twice. Sensei Konijin was scary when she was angry...

"T-totally! Just a game! Nothing else!" I nodded and pasted on one of my fake, charming smiles the would make most of our club customers melt. But Sensei wasn't one of our customers and eyed us skeptically.

"It seemed more like you were scaring her than anything else." Crap crap crap. Now what? Her steady glare made it hard to think. C'mon Kao, you're good at excuses!

Suddenly Annabel smiled. "No it was all fun and games, Sensei, really!" I looked at her with wide eyes. Hikaru did the same. I could she knew we were looking at her surprisingly, but she seemed to ignore it and kept going. "We're all in the same Drama Class and we were just practicing a scene together." Wait, she's in our Drama Class? "You see, Hikaru and Kaoru play these two demons who come to earth in human forms and I am their next victim. We were rehearsing our first meeting, which is at night so naturally, I have to act scared. Pretty interesting, huh?"

I looked back and forth between Annabel and Sensei, praying that she'll take the bait.

She did.

"Well, those two certainly fit the part if that's what you mean," she mumbled. I held back a snicker. _Touché, Sensei, touché._ "But if anything happens, just let me know."

Annabel smiled again. "No worries!" Sensei eyed us one more time before turning back and heading to the desk. Both Hikaru and I let out a breath we didn't know we were holding.

Hikaru rubbed the back of his head. "Hey thanks for covering for us back there."

"Yeah, we would've been toast if it wasn't for you," I agreed.

"Who said I did it for you?" It was barely above a whisper, but we heard it. We blinked. _...huh?_

"Hey just what is that suppose to mean?" Hikaru put his hands on his hips and leaned forward a little. We were both a little ticked off.

Annabel turned away from us with her shoulders hunched. "Just leave me alone."

Hikaru pouted as the bell rang and we headed back to our seats. "Screwy girl."

I looked back at Annabel worriedly. She had her chin in her hand and was gazing out the window with an unreadable expression on her face. Hmm, interesting...

We didn't talk to her for the rest of the day. Every time I looked back at her, Annabel was always looking out the window. She wasn't even paying attention! Something she said still didn't make sense in my mind though. If she didn't intervene to get us out of trouble, then why did she do it in the first place? To get _herself _out of trouble? But she didn't do anything wrong. And we might as well be a couple of strangers to her. It was so confusing!

I shook my head and decided to focus on the lesson. Besides, who knows what goes on in girls' brains.

Annabel's POV

Stupid twins. Stupid gingers. Stupid boys. I know I had no reason to hate them, but I couldn't help it. They just seemed so...shady.

I stared out the window for the rest of the lesson, not bothering to take notes. I saw one twin keep glancing at me from the corner of my eye, but I pretended not to notice. That's right, keep looking at me. Just you try to figure me out. Not like you have a chance anyway. I've reinforced the lock on my heart so many times, it might as well be nuclear bomb proof. So no way the mind of some touchy-feely high school boy will be able to crack the code.

...what the hell I am saying?

The afternoon bell rang, signaling lunch to start. Seriously? Well, time really flies when you're in Lala Land. I kept my gaze targeted out the window as the other students got up and made their way to the oversized cafeteria.

One twin swung an arm around the brunette kid from earlier and smirked. The other smiled but made no sort of advance on the smaller. I watched them with half-lidded eyes, simply observing them. The brunette caught me looking at them and turned around fully. I looked away.

"Um, excuse me?" I looked up to see the kid. Whoa, how did he get here so fast?

I lifted my chin off my hand and looked into his huge brown eyes. "Can I help you?" I asked politely, giving him a fake smile.

"I just wanted to welcome you to Ouran. It's nice to see a new face around here. I'm Haruhi Fujioka." He smiled and bowed slightly.

"Oh, well thank you, Haruhi. I'm Annabel Korutanii. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Would you like to join us for lunch?" Twin #1 seemed like he was about to protest, but was cut off by Twin #2 jabbing him in the ribs. #1 glared and #2 sent him a look.

"Thanks," I said, standing up. Dang, this kid is kinda short. "But no thanks. I'm not a huge fan of crowds." With that I walked out.

Hikaru's POV

Just who does this girl think she is? She can't just save our butts and then flick us off like we're a piece of dust! Well, I mean she can, considering she did, but that's not the point!

If she doesn't like us, why did she even bother saying anything in the first place? God, girls can be so confusing.

_Ding dong, dong ding. Ding ding dong ding. _Ah, finally, afternoon break. That means lunch. I sprung from my seat and slung an arm around Haruhi's shoulder.

"Hey Haruhi~!" I chimed.

She held a straight face as she continued to put her things away. "What do you want Hikaru?"

"Aw, don't be so mean! Can't a guy just say hi to his best buddy?" I gave her my signature smirk. She rolled her eyes at me, as usual. Kao stood off to the side, simply smiling at us.

Haruhi looked over at something. "What is it?" I followed her gaze. Oh. It's just Annabel.

"She seems kinda lonely," Haruhi said. "Do you think we should ask her to sit with us?"

"No way," I automatically replied. "She'll probably just ignore us the entire time."

Haruhi raised an eyebrow. "Speaking from experience?" I shrugged. "Well I'm going ask her." She stood up and walked over to the other girl.

_Please say no, please say no, please say no..._

"Thanks, but no thanks," she said, standing up. Score! "I'm not a huge fan of crowds." And she left. Man the way she walks really puts me off...just who in the hell does she think she is?

* * *

A/N: This really didn't turn out the way I had originally thought, but oh well. It's still good. Hopefully I kept the twins as in-character as possible. Naturally, I made Hikaru pissed. XP it's been a while since I watched the anime so i hope i got them right. I promise things will start kicking in the next chapter.

I have to give an update on when I'll be updating. This goes for all my stories. I skate in the mornings for 3 hours and I'll be starting dance classes tomorrow and that's from 1pm to 5pm. But it's only for a week. Chances are that updates will be slower, but I'll try to crank them out as fast as I can. In July, I'll be starting an acting camp, and that's from 9am to 5pm. Same goes for that. Thanks for understanding!

Til next time! PEACE!

X3 Ayumu

P.S. does anyone know if the blackout was successful? Like, did it do anything? Shoot me a message!


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Wow, I really didn't expect this many people to like this! I guess I must be doing something right, eh? Haha well anyway, sorry for the long wait, it took a lot longer than I expected. I've just been so busy with acting camp cuz they give us "home-play" (cuz it's not work, it's play!) and this is our last week so its crunch time. We're creating and directing and performing our own piece of theatre so it's been pretty hectic.

But I don't think you wanna hear about that, do you? Yeah. Didn't think so.

SO! This is the next chapter of Sunshine and Roses! Slightly longer than the others, so that's an upside. Enjoy~!

Warnings: slight language (like that ever hurt anybody), Hunny's cuteness, Kyoya's wrath, my crappy writing skills, and lots of POV changes

* * *

**Annabel's POV**

My footsteps echoed as I walked down the large hallway. I wasn't hungry. Plus, it was so peaceful just to take a walk. It was so quiet...

I took a deep breath and sighed contently. I loved moments like these. It was like nothing else in the world mattered, and I could just relax.

That is, until I fell rather hard on my butt and there was an object on top of me that was weighing me down.

"O-ow..." I winced as pain shot up my elbow. Looking up, my hazels eyes meet innocent brown ones. It was that kids from the other day. Mitsukuni, right?

"Oh no! I'm so sorry!" the little boy scrambled to get off of me and to his feet. I bit back a grin. _So cute~!_

"Ah, don't worry about it. It was my fault, I wasn't watching where I was going." I sat up.

"But I got cake all over your uniform!"

I looked down at my torso to see what he had said was true. Crumbs of white cake littered the yellow fabric of my dress and chocolate frosting was smeared on my stomach. Well that's gonna stain...

"Shit," I accidentally hissed.

The sound of sniffling reached my ears. "I'm really, really sorry, miss." I looked up to see that Mitsukuni had started crying. He was sitting on his knees, head bent downward and hands clutching the plush rabbit like his life depended on it. His lower lip trembled and big, childlike tears formed and began falling down his cheeks.

_Man, this kid's too cute for his own good..._ And yet, I could help but feel guilty. I guess my swearing didn't make him feel better.

"Hey, don't cry." I gave a small smile. "It's not your fault, it's mine. I mean, first I knocked you down and ruined your cake yesterday and here I've gone and done it again!"

He suddenly snapped his head up. "Oh, no please don't blame yourself miss!"

I blinked, surprised at his outburst. "Huh?"

"I guess it really is dangerous of me to walk around eating cake all the time. Like Takashi said, I could run into someone like I did just now and maybe I shouldn't take my cake to the bathroom..."

I stifled a laugh.

"But I know where the extra uniforms are, so come on!" Next thing I knew, I was on my feet and Mitsukuni had started leading me by the wrist.

"Ah! W-wait, huh?" Eyes wide and still shocked from the sudden physical contact, my body couldn't really do anything besides follow the boy. Why did he always have to grab my hand like that? This kid had an iron grip… "Where are we going?"

He looked back at me, smiling. "To the club room, of course!" Club room? He continued to drag down corridor after corridor with strength I would've never guessed had been stored in such a tiny body. He pulled me up a flight of grand staircases and past large ceiling-to-floor windows that framed the tall clock tower outside. Finally he stopped when we arrived at a pair of large, pink doors.

"Music Room #3? You sure _this _is where they keep the spare uniforms?" I looked down at him skeptically. He nodded, but said nothing. I sighed and glanced at my own uniform. "Whatever." And I pushed the heavy doors open.

* * *

**General POV**

Haruhi picked at her simple bento lunch as she sat between Hikaru and Kaoru at their usual table with the other hosts.

"So Kyoya," Hikaru started, leaning his cheek on one hand.

"Have you," Kaoru continued, leaning his other cheek on the other hand, creating a mirror image of his twin.

"Discovered anything interesting—"

"Regarding the new girl?"

The 2nd yearer quietly sucked in a frustrated breath, not exactly in the mood for the twins' antics at the moment. He didn't want to admit it, but he was stumped. There was just nothing he could find out about this Annabel character. The only thing he knew was what he had told the hosts the other day. Nothing more. He just didn't understand. And Kyoya doesn't like things he doesn't understand.

"C'mon you two," Haruhi cut in (much to Kyoya's relief). "Quit bothering Kyoya-sempai. And what's with this fascination of the new girl? Don't tell me you're planning on making her another one of your 'toys.'"

Hikaru smirked. "But of course, dear Haruhi,"

"We simply _have _to. She's just so…" Kaoru sent Hikaru a look.

"_**Interesting**_."

Hunny looked up from his cake worriedly. "I hope she's alright, Takashi. She seemed really scared yesterday."

Haruhi turned to her sempai. "What happened yesterday?"

"Before you came looking for us, we ran into that new girl. She seemed really scared of Takashi,"

"Nothing really new there," Hikaru mumbled.

"And she seemed to be really out of it, you know? She kept spacing out and then she started breathing really heavily and back up against the wall. She said she had asthma."

"Yeah," Mori agreed simply.

"I will not allow it!" Tamaki suddenly pounded his fist on the cafeteria table, bringing the others' attention to himself. He had been quiet for so long, Haruhi had forgotten he was even there (which is really saying something considering it's Tamaki).

"Won't allow what, Boss?" Kaoru asked.

"That girl is the prime example of unhappiness! And what is the Host Club's job, men?"

Haruhi's memory flashed back to the night of the ball the host Club threw at the beginning of the year. "To make every girl happy?"

"That's right!" Tamaki swooped around and struck a dramatic pose, his long finger pointed at the twins. "So I don't want you two doppelgangers to chase her away with your crazy shenanigans! Understood?"

"Nope," they responded in a bored tone. Haruhi sweatdropped when Tamaki started to yell at the twins and they snapped back to fuel him even further.

Mori noticed the worried look that flashed through Haruhi's eyes when Hunny told her about their encounter. She was concerned for the girl. As was he. He looked down at his cousin to see that the boy had gone back to eating his cake without a care in the world.

"Takashi?" Hunny looked up at the taller teen with curious eyes. They said, _"Are you okay?"_

"Yeah," he gave a curt nod. _"I'm fine. Don't worry about me." _

Hunny smiled, closing his eyes. "I'm glad! Hey, Takashi?"

"Hm?"

"I have to go to the bathroom."

"Leave your cake here," he called out as the small blonde picked up his plate.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine!" Hunny chirped.

"Alright. Just be careful."

"Okay!" And he was off.

Mori watched the smaller teen happily skip out of the large cafeteria before turning his attention back to the others at the sound of Kyoya's laptop clicking shut. The twins and Tamaki ceased their bickering and turned to the dark-haired boy. It was amazing really, how a single sound could control such chaos.

"Kyoya-sempai?" Haruhi looked at him with worried eyes. He didn't respond, just simply pushed his glasses up his nose so that the light reflected off of them.

"I'm leaving." He stood up. "There's no way I can work in the atmosphere of these morons." Tucking his precious computer under his arm, Kyoya swept out of the room with grace and poise. As usual.

"Geez, what's with him?" Hikaru looked on with a bored expression. Kaoru glanced at Haruhi. Her gaze was fixed on Kyoya's retreating figure. She saw it. The glint in his eyes, the sweat that had collected beneath his bangs, the tensed fingers as he typed, the gritted teeth. Kyoya's patience was wearing thin, and he was just about ready to snap.

* * *

**Annabel's POV**

The scent of roses filled my nostrils as soon as I opened the doors. It was so overwhelming I started coughing a little.

"Oh no!" I heard Mitsukuni cry. "Is your asthma acting up again?"

I gave him a weird look. "W-what are you—" I was interrupted by a few more coughs, in which I remembered the little white lie from the other day. "Oh! Um, no it's just, uh…some spit went down the wrong pipe is all."

"Are you sure you're okay?" I resisted the urge not to just scoop him up in my arms and hug the kid. The serious expression on that cute little face was just too much!

"Yeah, I'm fine! Don't worry about me!"

"…Okay…" What's with _that _look?

After I calmed down, Mitsukuni led me into the music room. Wait, this is a _music room_? Dude, this place is _freaking huge! _A whole orchestra could fit in here, hell, you could hold a whole _banquet_ in this place! Just how rich is this school?

I gazed in awe at the perfect tiled floor, the marble columns and the vases of roses that seemed to be scattered everywhere. Despite the openness of the space who's acoustics could probably match that of a large concert hall, something was a little off about this music room…

"This way!" Mitsukuni ran deeper into the room, no, _hall, _and turned a corner into a doorway that led to another room. There are rooms in this room? Does that even makes it a room?

Still a little put out by everything, I quietly followed the little boy and caught the door that he had just opened before it closed. Stepping inside, I stopped yet again for my brain to take in the sight before me.

Clothes. Endless racks of all kinds of clothes ran along the walls and cut through the center of the room. They were arranged around a few changing booths that were mini-tents. Cream-colored drapes hung from the white skeleton of the changing room. I was so caught up in the…fanciness of it all, I didn't notice Mitsukuni slipping away to the dress section of the room.

I was speechless. I had never seen so many clothes all in one place. This made my closet look like a dress-up chest. I walked through the miles of clothes, running my hands along the expensive fabrics. You could find everything in here! Costumes, ball gowns, tuxes, cosplay uniforms, party dresses, summer clothes, bathing suits (_bathing suits?_), even pajamas for crying out loud! If I didn't know any better, I would've mistaken this to be the Theatre Department.

"Such expensive clothes…"

"Hey~! Annabel, over here!" Mitsukuni's muffled voice broke me from my thoughts of envy. I whipped my head around and stood on my tip-toes, trying to find a little head of blond in the sea of clothes.

"Mitsukuni?" I called. "Where'd you go?" I turned around and yelled out in surprise when I saw the boy in question holding up a yellow uniform dress in my face.

He lowered the dress so I could see his face. "I wasn't sure what size you were, so I kinda grabbed a bunch of them." He turned and that's when I noticed the wheel barrel, yes _wheel barrel, _of the same yellow dress.

"Uh, well…I guess I'll just try on all of them…"

"Okay!"

* * *

**General POV**

It was never possible for Kyoya to _not _think. He always had to be doing something, doing work, making someone's life a living hell. It was simply not possible for him to turn his thoughts off. He was constantly analyzing, thinking, figuring people out. Usually, he would have preferred the peace and quiet that the vast hallways of Ouran had to offer. But now, there was nothing else to think about besides the mystery that was Annabel Korutanii. Who was this girl? Why couldn't he find anything on her? By now, he would've have everything from her birthday to if her mother had a miscarriage before she was born (yeah, it gets _that _personal, if not more). But alas, he had nothing.

Kyoya _hated _not knowing. He was always a step ahead of the other hosts, so it practically mocked him if he was ever put in this sort of situation where they didn't know anymore than he did. Or worse, if they knew _more. _He shuddered at the thought. It was almost as he if he was being knocked down to their level of idiocy, and Lord knows that Kyoya Ootori is no idiot.

With these thought rolling around in his brain, the 17-year-old had barely noticed that he had made his way from cafeteria to the club room, which was in a completely different building. He simply shrugged, assuming he went there by instinct. He shifted his laptop under his arm and pushed the doors open, greeting the all-too-familiar scent of roses.

* * *

**Annabel's POV**

After trying on about 14 dresses, but who's counting, I finally managed to find the one that fit me perfectly. I replaced my white tights with fresh ones and slipped into the uniform with ease. Was it just me, or was this dress actually more comfortable than the one I was given? Nevertheless, I used the mirror that was in the changing booth to tie the thin red ribbon around my collar. I stepped back to analyze my reflection. After fixing my hair and deeming myself presentable, I carefully gathered up my dirty uniform in the plastic cover that Mitsukuni gave me and stepped out of the changing booth.

I looked around to find myself alone. "Mitsukuni?" I called out. "I'm finished! Where are you?" My question was met with silence. Great, just prefect. Now how the hell am I going to get out of here? I can barely make my way through the main building let alone a completely different one. Man this sure sucks…

Alright, calm down, Annie. You can do this. Let's just start by getting out of this room first. Then maybe you can ask a teacher or someone to show you back to class.

After a few deep breaths and a good pep-talk, I started to weave my way through the maze of clothes. I tried to retrace my steps, using the clothes as "landmarks" of where I had been before. Regardless of countless dead-ends, I finally came to a door. Without a second thought I pulled open the heavy thing and shot through the opening to my freedom.

"Yes! I made it! Finally!" I cried a little over-dramatically. I hunched over and placed my hands on my knees, panting. I glared back at the door as it slowly closed shut. _Well, I don't know who would need that many clothes, _ I thought as I stood back up straight, still staring at the door. _But if this is the _music room, _then I don't even want to see the Drama Club! _

My attention was brought forward when I heard a small "Ahem." I turned around and was met with a tall boy sitting a small table. There was a small teacup that sat beside the expensive laptop he was tapping away at. I blinked. Who was this?

The boy glance up at me, but never stopped typing. His cold onyx eyes looked at, no, _through _me from behind thin rimmed glasses that sat fashionably on the bridge of his nose. Something about the way his eyes did a one-over of me and the way he gave a sweet smile sent a chill down my back.

"Hello, there," his smooth voice had sultry hint to it. "And who might you be?"

* * *

A/N:DUN DUN DUUUUUUUN~! And so our helpless little OC meets the Shadow King! MWAHAHAHAHAAHA~! XDD

...please ignore the above...

I just realized that I put a lot of page breaks in this chapter. Oh well! Hopefully this satifies everybody. Or not, considering I left you hanging. Sorry, I just love to do that. XP Did I do okay keeping everyone in character? I'm not sure, I had to go to the wiki to refresh my memory, so I think I did a fairly decent job, but _you _tell _me_!

Oh, and the description of the changing booths are based of those that were featured in the live action drama series of OHSHC. And yes, there is a live action series of Ouran. It's okay, I freaked out when I found out too. So for a better idea of what they look like (cuz I suck at descriptions), just go watch it on YouTube or something.

Next up: How does Annabel react to meeting Kyoya? How will Kyoya act on the edge of patience to find out who she is? And where the hell did Hunny go? We'll see you then!

Review?

3 Ayumu X3


	4. Interesting

A/N: Dude has it seriously been a month already?! No way! Hahaha, oh well! X)

Because of very encouraging review from a certain reader (ca-ru-te-ru: update), I was forced to get my butt back in gear. I blame the start of skool. For the past two weeks, I have officially started my high skool career! Yay? Anywho, things hav been crazy and I was sort of putting this off cuz of lack of inspiration and plain laziness. But here it is! the next chappie of Sunshine and Roses!

Warnings: my crappy writing skills...yeah, that's about it

* * *

**General POV**

"Hello there. And who might you be?"

It was a rather silly question, for he already knew the answer. Oh yes, he knew who she was. And yet, he didn't know _who_ she was.

What was her favorite color? Her dress size? Her favorite childhood memory? Did she like ice cream, or gelato? Did she have any hobbies? Any dreams? How was her family life? Tragic, pleasant, twisted? Did she speak any languages? Did she play an instrument? What is her favorite type of music?

These questions kept bouncing around in his brain as his eyes flickered back and forth between the picture on the computer screen and the face that was in front of him. He pushed his glasses up his nose, a seemingly casual gesture, but in truth was angling them just right so the light reflected off of the glass, blocking the girl from reading his eyes.

The girl blinked, not sure how to respond to the boy's question. She was frozen. She felt like he could see into her, like he knew all of her imperfections, all of her mistakes, all of her…secrets. She felt that if she moved, she might set off a time bomb.

"Excuse me," his cold tone brought Annabel back to reality. "I asked you a question. It's only polite to respond with an answer, not just stare at me stupidly."

Annabel's face hardened. _What the hell? What right does this guy have to call me stupid?! _She folded her arms across her chest. "It's courtesy to give your name first before asking another's, don't you think?" she challenged.

_Oh, she's stronger than I had anticipated. _Kyoya's interest was heightened.

He ceased his typing and chuckled a bit. Grabbing his teacup by the handle ever-so-gracefully, the older boy looked up at the girl with a completely innocent (not) smile. The light no longer reflected off his glasses, showing his cheerful-looking closed eyes.

"The name's Kyoya. Kyoya Ootori." He lifted the cup to his lips for a sip.

Annabel was not wavered by his smile that would make most girls blush and make complete fools of themselves. She simply gave a small "hmph."

"And you are…?" Kyoya gestured with his head for her to finish. She sighed, looking away.

"Annabel. Annabel Korutanii."

"American."

She turned back to him. "Huh?"

"Your name." He placed his teacup back on the saucer. "It's American, isn't it?"

Annabel was slightly perplexed by this comment. _Why does he care about my name? _"Uh, yeah that's right. Why do you ask?"

"Oh, it's nothing." He put the china on the table, making a small clinking noise as the cup hit the saucer. "Just…curious."

Annabel started to really feel uncomfortable under his gaze. She felt like her being was being stripped away, layer by layer to get to the very core and put under a microscope. And being with this guy wasn't making it any better. She shifted her weight to one foot and hunched her shoulders slightly and looked away again. Kyoya studied her body language.

_She's clearly uncomfortable at the moment. Not sure what else to do, she'll probably ask me for directions soon since it's obvious she doesn't know where she is exactly. _

"Um, anyway…could you help me? I need to get back to class, and I'm pretty sure I'm in a completely different building…" She trailed off, not liking the fact that she had to ask the teen for help.

…_Just as I thought…_

"I could," he said calmly, resuming his typing. "But 'will I?' is the question."

"I don't know," she replied. "Will you?"

The speed of his hands hitting the keys never faltered. "No."

"Tch…and why not?"

"What could I possibly hope to gain from helping a stupid girl find her way back to her classroom?"

This made her stop. What could he possibly hope to gain? She knew the answer: nothing. Just wasted time and a favor he'd have to owe up to later. It was obvious he thought she was stupid, so why did she even bother asking for help if he wasn't willing to offer any? Maybe she'd thought he'd pity her and…No, that's even worse. All she wanted was to get back to class! He didn't even have to walk with her, he could just give her directions and she'd be off! What the hell was this guy's problem?! Her confusion slowly turned to anger.

"Well fine!" she finally cried. "I don't need you! I'll just find it by myself then!" Without another word, she stormed out of the music room in a huff, purposely slamming the door shut behind her with a loud _bang! _

Kyoya's fingers stopped, letting the sound echo in the room for a few seconds. The clicking of the keys soon filled the silence that followed.

_Interesting… _

(insert line)

Annabel couldn't see where she was going. Her hazel eyes were blinded with rage at the moment. She just wanted to scream. That…that… that _jackass! _He had absolutely no right…no right at all! How…how _dare _he! Calling her stupid, acting all high-and-mighty…so what if he probably had more money than her? So what if he probably got everything he wanted? So what if he probably had to world at his fingertips? (Judging by the way he acted, he probably _did._)So what if he had never felt the pain of being neglected, unloved and forgotten…? So what if he'd never felt alone?

Her anger quickly turned to hurt and sadness as she felt warmth fill her nose and tears prick the back of her eyes. She shook her head. This was no time to cry. What was wrong with her? Usually she was able to control her emotions. But now…with that guy…

Annabel's steps slowly came to a stop. The sunlight from the window to her right outlined her figure and cast her shadow on the perfectly waxed tiles. She tilted her head to the large glass and gazed out. The tall pinkish clock tower rang a few times, signaling the end of lunch period and the beginning of the next class as three pigeons flew across the sky. The windowsill framed the scenery perfectly, putting her at some sort of ease. She was late, but now she didn't care.

Her eyes opened (she had closed them in content) when the sharp sound of shoes on tile filled the otherwise empty hallway. She didn't turn. She simply waited for him to pass. But he didn't pass without a word.

"You better hurry, or you'll be late."

Had it been a few moments earlier, she might've taken him to be mocking her and probably would've lashed out with another smart-ass comment of her own. Instead she just hummed in response, not giving him the luxury of a full answer.

His strides didn't falter, just like his typing. They were even and confident, not a sliver of uncertainty among them. For one reason or another, Annabel wanted to get another look at his face, but he never looked back at her. So she started at the back of his head, black hair gently swaying with every step he took.

Then everything became slow motion. Her vision shifted. One moment she was staring at the back of a male student at Ouran Academy, and then the next she was staring at the back of an older man, one with longer hair, more unkempt and dirty. The light was bright and inviting, then it was dark and grim. This picture was an exact copy, a parallel. He was leaving her, alone, helpless. She couldn't look away. But she wasn't sure she wanted to…

"Wait!"

The word flew out of her mouth before she could stop it. She didn't understand. Something about this feeling, about this _boy,_ caused her gut to pull and twist in a way that was unfamiliar to her.

But it didn't stop there. The boy stopped, and slowly turned over his right shoulder. The conflicting images flashed through her vision. Color, then black and white, color, black and white. It played like a moving picture, but the pictures were from different stories. The only difference was that the boy in front of her was turning back, and the other hadn't. She didn't _want _him to leave. She wanted him to stay with her, protect her.

Kyoya turned until he was facing Annabel, his body twisted at the waist. He blinked, confusion evident beneath his wire-rimmed glasses. But it was only for a split second, his eye quickly back to the indifferent pools of brown. However he had no need to slap the mask back on, for Annabel didn't even notice the change in his pupils. She was too busy trying to figure out just exactly what she was feeling.

The girl was trembling. Her hands grasped at the skirt of her dress, wrinkling the bright fabric. Her eyes shook, staring into his, practically screaming, "Don't go." Suddenly it happened again. Onyx eyes turned purple, frowning lips turned upwards in an all-too-familiar smirk. Her breath shortened, becoming more and more shallow. This panic attack was stronger than before, but she didn't know how to stop it. Soon, the flashing of images stopped, and all she could see were those dark purple eyes, leering at her, undressing her. Annabel's shaking became worse as she saw the purple eyes start to approach her. As they came closer, she took an uneasy step backwards, slowly beginning to shake her head.

…_Annabel…_

"No…I don't want to…"

_Annabel…_

"P-please, stop…"

_Annabel._

Her violently shaking hands grabbed her own shoulders in a vicious attempt to hug herself. "I don't wanna do it, please don't make me!"

_Annabel!_

A loud combination of a scream and whimper escaped from her lips, her breaking point as she fell to her knees and squeezed her eyes shut. She pressed her forehead to the cold floor, whimpering so much she was on the verge of tears.

_ANNABEL! _

Annabel's eyes flew open at the sudden physical contact. She shot up and shoved the hand that was on her shoulder away with a solid _thwack! _

"Don't touch me!" she screamed. She stumbled to her feet and glared at Kyoya with hatred burning in her eyes.

The older male stared up at her, even more confused than before. During her breakdown, he had quickly rushed to her side, forgetting his precious laptop for once. He had no idea what to do. This sort of situation was foreign to him. Kyoya was never good at comforting people, that was Haruhi or Tamaki's job. He was usually the one who inflicted the pain.

Annabel's face softened, her eyes becoming tired and her breaths heavier, her shoulders dropping. Her whole body relaxed and she seemed to familiarize herself with her surroundings again. Kyoya saw this and took the opportunity to regain his composure himself. Fixing his glasses (they had become askew), he got back to his feet and straightened his jacket and smoothed out his pants. After retrieving his computer from the floor, he turned to face Annabel once again.

He opened his mouth to say something, but she beat him to it.

"Just go."

Chestnut-colored locks fell over her eyes, casting a shadow on her face. Her arms were limp by her side, and all of the energy seemed to be drained out of her. It wasn't a cold command, but a desperate plea. She wasn't asking nor was she ordering him. She was _begging _him. She was _begging _him not to ask any questions, not to delve any deeper. For if he did, there would be serious consequences.

And for once, Kyoya listened.

He nodded, and even though she couldn't see him do so, she felt relief rush through her when he didn't respond. Turning on his heel, the boy briskly continued to walk down the corridor. Without looking back.

_How…curious…_

* * *

A/N: Wow, that was just...ugh that was horrible. I know it's short, but it's better than nothing right? A lot of the descriptions might not make any sense (cuz i suck at that) so if you hav any questions, just review or PM me. And in all honesty, don't expect this to be updated regularly. I have no idea what i'm doing next, im pretty much making this up as i go along. -_- I really didn't think I'd get this far...

And so, I apologize in advance. *bows at a 45 degree angle*

Reviews are greatly appreciated! X3


	5. Host Club?

**A/N: I'm not dead. Blame school. That is all. **

Warnings: confusing descriptions, slight language, my crappy writing skills, blah, blah, blaah... JUST FREAKING READ IT

* * *

Sunshine and Roses Ch 8

**Annabel's POV**

The sound of the bathroom door slamming shut bounced off the tile walls. I leaned against it even though I knew no one would come after me. My chest heaved up and down unevenly as I tried to catch my breath. I felt the presence of someone else and my head shot up, startling the-already-surprised trio of girls that had been cut off mid-conversation.

I pulled myself together…or tried to anyway. Quickly walking past them, I avoided any type of eye contact and ducked into the nearest stall. My ears where met with silence, and I could almost feel their confused looks as they glance at each other. There was a pause, and then shoes shuffled as they hurried out the door. I felt my heart rate drop considerably when I heard the door close.

I stayed quiet at first, the sound of my breath filling the cold room. Then I let out a shakey sigh and rested my forehead on the stall door. My eyes slowly fluttered shut as I tried to analyze what had just happened.

What was I doing? How long was I going to keep going like this? Living in constant fear, in constant paranoia. I don't want to be scared anymore, but…those _eyes. _It's like they follow me everywhere. It's like _he _follows me everywhere. I _have _to be strong…I have to…

I felt anger rise in my stomach as I wiped away a few tears that had made their way down my cheeks. Damn it. Why the hell am I crying? Quit it, Annie! I said stop crying, damn it!

"Shit…" My voice cracked. Why was I so weak? Why couldn't I just _move freaking on? _

"Hello? Is someone in here?" My eyes flew open. I tensed as I saw a pair of dark brown shoes stop in front of my stall.

I wiped my eyes messily while letting out a quiet, "Hi."

"Are you alright?"

"…I'm fine."

"Are you sure? You don't sound very fine…" Man what did it take for someone to just leave me alone here?

I took a mental deep breath before unlatching the lock and slowly opening the door. The girl in front of me let out a small gasp, her large greenish-brown eyes filled with concern. I looked past her, at the mirror. My hazel eyes were glassy and puffy from crying and my nose was a noticeable red color.

I snorted. "I look attractive." The girl gave a concerned smile as I walked past her and began to splash water on my face.

We stayed like that for a while, the only sound was the splashing of water as it lapped my skin and sloshed back into the sink. When I finished, I kept my head down so as to not drip water onto my new uniform. I grabbed the air in the direction where the towels were, but was met with fluffy cotton. I looked up slightly and saw that the girl was holding out a towel for me. I nodded, silently thanking her before taking the towel and drying my face.

"Annabel."

"Huh?"

"That's your name, right? You're the new student from America."

I broke into a shy smile. "Oh, yeah. That's me."

"I'm Kurakano Momoka. Class A-1 Vice-President." She bowed and smiled sweetly.(1)

"Ah! The pleasure's all mine, Kurakano-san." I bowed back, remembering the Japanese suffix that showed respect to someone you just met.

"Oh please, call me by my first name! It's no problem! And if you need help with anything, just ask okay? You can always talk to me!" By the hidden look in her eyes, I could tell that she wasn't referring to school at all.

I smiled. "Thanks, Momoka-kun."

We walked back to class together, filling the empty hallways with idle chatter and loud laughter. I asked her about growing up in Japan and she asked me the same in America.

When we finally returned to the classroom, I was surprised to find it mostly empty, save for a few boys crowded around a video game and a trio of girls gossiping(2). I didn't recall seeing anyone else in the hallways…just how long was I out of class? I turned to Momoka.

"Uh, ne, Momoka-kun?"

"Hai?"

"Where is everybody?"

"Oh! Classes finished early today. Didn't you know? Something about Sensei Yoshida(3) not feeling well and going home in the middle of the day. Apparently they weren't able to find a substitute fast enough, so Sensei Konjin let us go a bit early."

I nodded. "Oh…"

A girl with short, light brown hair called from where the trio of girls where beginning to leave. "Momo-chan! Are you coming? They'll be opening soon!"

Momoka seemed to suddenly remember something. "Oh yeah! I'll be right there!" She hurried to her desk and grabbed her bag before catching up with the other girls.

I was at a loss. "Wait! Momoka-kun, where are you guys going?"

"We're going to the Host Club!" the girl who had called Momoka answered.

"The…Host Club? What's that?"

All four girls stared at me like I had grown an extra limb. They looked horrified.

I blinked. _…What? _

"Y-y-you don't know what a h-host club is?!" the third girl sputtered. I suddenly felt uncomfortable under their shocked gazes.

"Uh, should I?"

"Yes!" two of the girls said in unison.

Momoka turned to me. "Anna-chan, why don't you come with us? We'll explain on the way."

"Uh, sure. Just let me grab my stuff."

The girls led me across one of the various school courtyards to this so-called Host Club. Apparently, a host club was a place where women go to be entertained by men. They snack, drink, and just talk about life in general. Sometimes, they even have special events and dress days for various holidays and such. Sounded interesting, so I figured I'd go check it out.

I was so busy listening to them explain and trying to figure out why in the world anyone would want to start something as absurd as a host club that I didn't notice where the girls were taking me. It was only by the time we reached the door to Music Room #3 did I realize that this was the same building that I was in earlier.

"It's…in here?" Momoka nodded.

"No one ever uses this Music Room, so the Host Club meets here almost everyday after school."

"I can't wait to see Haruhi~!" The other girls squealed in agreement. Even Momoka blushed a little.

Wait, Haruhi? Wasn't that the name of that brunette kid earlier? He's in the host club?

The girls continued to squeal and fuss over their hair and make-up for a while. Before long, more girls arrived and did the same. They were smiling and blushing and getting super excited for…something. I stood off to the side, not wanting to take part in the sickeningly girly display of admiration.

Then, as the clock tower struck 3:05pm, the girls' squeals and excitement heightened immensely. Crowding around the doors, I was pushed and squeezed as the girls tried to be the first ones in.

_Ding dong, dong ding. Ding dong dong ding. _

At the final ding, the large doors of Music Room #3 seemed to slowly creak open by themselves. I tried to get a better view above all the heads, but all I could see was a bright light and rose petals swirling towards us in an imaginary wind.

"_Welcome, ladies." _

I blinked. When the light faded, six figures came into view. One sat in a chair like it was a throne, with his chin rested lightly on his knuckles. It was a tall boy, a third year by the looks of it. I didn't get a good chance to look at him because of all the girls that were crowding around them. All I saw was a head of bright blond hair that stood out among the dark heads surrounding him. I stayed off to the side, unsure of what to do. Eventually, Momoka spotted me and pulled me over with the rest of the girls.

"Come on, Anna-chan!"

"Good afternoon, Momoka-kun. The usual I assume? I'll get Haruhi."

"Thanks, Kyoya-senpai!"

I whipped my head around at the name just in time to see the back of a very familiar black-haired teen walking away from me. This time, instead of a laptop under his arm, he was gingerly carrying a little black notebook.

My jaw almost dropped. That_ guy is in the Host Club? No way. _

Kyoya made his way back to us after a few minutes, scribbling something in his notebook. I was surprised that he hadn't noticed me by now. N-not that I want him to notice me! I found that the more I looked at him, the angrier I became. He looked up from his notebook…right into my eyes. I instantly looked away, pretending to be completely absorbed in a vase of roses nearby. I could've sworn I heard something like a chuckle. He closed his notebook.

"Right this way, ladies." I could practically hear the smirk on his face. _Jerk._

He led us to a nearby table that wasn't too far away from one of the huge floor-to-ceiling windows. I eyed the notebook under his arm. I suddenly had the urge to steal it…

When we reached the table and were seated, Kyoya gave a small bow. "Your Host will be with you shortly. Enjoy yourselves, ladies." And then he turned and left, off to attend to the other guests. Not long after, a small brunette boy approached us while carrying a small tray of tea and snacks.

**General POV: **(btw, Haruhi is a "he" here b/c Annabel doesn't know she's a girl…just go with it)

"Good afternoon, ladies," Haruhi greeted, setting the tea and snacks on the table.

"Good afternoon, Haruhi!" the girls said in unison. Annabel looked at them weirdly. _Well that's a little creepy…_

He smiled sweetly before sitting down himself. As he smiled, Annabel couldn't help but notice just how cute he was…

"So ladies, how was your day today?" He started pouring tea in each of the guests' cups.

The four girls began all talking, taking turns about voicing their problems, accomplishments and mood of the day. The boy silently nodded while they talked, listening to them with his full attention. When they finished, he would comment whole-heartedly. Annabel watched them without a word, admiring the way Haruhi would actually listen to them and pay attention, a feat that was not common to find in the modern teenage boy.

"What about you, Annabel?" The question made said girl come back to Earth. "You haven't said a word this whole time."

Annabel turned to face Haruhi, who was looking at her expectantly. She couldn't help but notice the other girls giving her their full attention also.

"Uh…" she shifted in her seat. She wasn't used to this kind of attention. "My day was good." She gave a weak half-smile.

Haruhi nodded. "Well that's good. How are you finding Ouran Academy so far?"

"It's good. Lots of, um, interesting people." Kyoya suddenly flashed through her mind.

For some reason (unknown to Annabel at the time), Haruhi found that amusing and laughed. "Yeah, that's certainly true!" Annabel smiled, happy that she could make the other laugh.

"Oh no!" The cry turned their attention to the girl with the short light brown hair who was staring at her watch. "I'm so sorry, Haruhi, but I forgot that I had to leave early today! My parents have an important dinner meeting tonight and I'm supposed to help them set up!" She stood up quickly, the chair making a small squeak noise on the tile and began to gather her things.

"Ah, no need to worry. If you need to leave, go ahead. It's no problem." He also stood up. "At least let me show you to the door."

The girl smiled. "Arigato!"

Annabel watched them leave, thinking that Haruhi was quite the gentleman. The girl quickly bowed to both Kyoya and Haruhi, thanking them before slipping out the large doors. Kyoya turned to the shorter and started writing in his book while saying something. She couldn't tell what it was, but she did notice that Haruhi seemed a little irked off at whatever remark Kyoya just made. He said something back, but Kyoya simply smirked and continued writing.

_Hm…interesting… _

Momoka noticed that Annabel was staring. She followed her gaze, and couldn't help but smile when she realized whom the girl was staring at.

"Oh, sorry about that, ladies." Haruhi took his seat again.

"Don't worry about it, Haruhi!" one girl said. "You were just doing your job."

"Uh, yeah. My job…" Annabel thought she saw a hint of sadness in his large eyes. Did he not want to be in the Host Club?

He perked up. "Anyway…"

**Haruhi's POV:**

I stood up, not wanting to be rude. "At least let me show you to the door." The girl, Chikyo-kun, smiled.(4)

"Arigato!"

I led her to the doors, where Kyoya stood, writing in his stupid little book. She bowed and thanked both of us before rushing through the doors.

"Letting a costumer leave before their time is up? That's another addition to your debt, Haruhi."

I could feel irritation build up inside me. "That's not fair Kyoya-senpai! She needed to leave, I wasn't just gonna force her to stay."

He said nothing, just smirked and continued writing.

I sighed, knowing it would make no difference. I walked back to my guests and sat back down.

"Oh, sorry about that ladies."

"Don't worry about it, Haruhi! You were just doing your job."

"Uh, yeah. My job…" One heck of a job, huh? I brighten up a little, not wanting to worry my guests. "Anyway…"

For the next twenty minutes or so, I kept my guests entertained. I poured them more tea, offered more snacks and continued to make small talk about their lives. The other three girls acted as they normally did; smiling, eager to talk, blushing at moments. The only who didn't say a word was Annabel. Sure, she would laugh and smile at appropriate times, but she seemed a little detached from the rest of us. I couldn't help but feel like she was watching me the whole time. But every time I would turn to her and smile, she would immediately look somewhere else. I was worried about her. Judging from what Hunny-senpai and Mori-senpai said, there was something up with her. I didn't want her to feel uncomfortable or left out.

"So, Annabel," I turned my attention to her. "This is your first time visiting the Host Club, isn't it?"

"Uh, yeah." She nodded.

"Would you like me to give you a tour later?"

"Ah! No, that's okay, I'm sure I'll be—" She was cut off by Momoka-kun.

"Ooh, that sounds like a good idea! Since Anna-chan didn't go through the normal Host-Choosing process, she doesn't know what other kinds of Hosts there are.* Anna-chan, I think you better take up Haruhi-kun's offer." The other two girls agreed.

"Uh, well, if it's no too much trouble…I guess…" Annabel looked back at me.

I gave a reassuring smile. "My pleasure."

**TIME SKIP – THE NEXT DAY **

**General POV**

The final bell rang, releasing students from their final classes of the day. Momoka bounced up to Annabel as she was packing up.

"C'mon Anna-chan, we want to take you to the mall!"

"Uh, maybe another day, Momoka-kun. I think I'm gonna head over to the Host Club again."

Momoka traded knowing looks with the other two girls for the day before. She turned back to Annabel. "Alright then, Anna-chan. Ja ne~!"

Annabel took her time packing up, all the while stealing glances at Haruhi. She continued to watch as the twins started pestering the host. He responded to their teasing remarks with a dead-pan expression. They didn't seem fazed at all and simply laughed it off.

Eventually, the trio started making their out of the classroom. Annabel stood at the same time they did and struck up a conversation with the closest person so as not to seem suspicious.

"I mean, I was absolutely floored when I heard about it. It wasn't even…" Annabel was only half listening to the girl in front of her. From the corner of her eye, she saw the three of them walking out of the classroom and turning the corner. Throwing out a quick excuse, Annabel took her leave.

"Hey Haruhi~!"

The three stopped and turned around at the call. Haruhi smiled, Hikaru scowled, and Kaoru sweatdropped. Haruhi stepped forward as Annabel ran towards them.

"Hey, Annabel."

"You heading to the Host Club?" Haruhi nodded. "Mind if I join you guys? I don't really remember where it is."

"Sure no problem. This school is pretty big." Annabel laughed.

Kaoru could feel Hikaru's angry meter go up a few degrees. _Here we go…_

The four of them resumed their walk. Annabel and Haruhi were in the lead, chatting away as if they were old friends. The twins followed behind, silent the whole time. Hikaru out of anger, Kaoru out of nervousness that Hikaru would strangle the person he was currently glaring at. One could see the smoke coming out of his head!

Annabel laughed a little louder than nessecary at Haruhi's comment. She was fully aware of one of the twins (she didn't know which one) trying to burn holes in the back of her head with his eyes and she was loving every second of it. _Take that, #1. _

Three doorways, one courtyard, two flights of stairs and countless windows later, they arrived at the 3rd Music Room. But as soon as they pushed the doors open, a head of blond hair flashed past them and took Haruhi with it.

"HARUHI~!" Tamaki screamed as he tackle-hugged Haruhi to the ground. Annabel tried not to laugh. Hikaru and Kaoru looked on with bored eyes. They were used to this.

"Haruhi, why are you late? Where were you? Did those two do something to you?! I was so worried!" The blond pointed an accusing finger that the twins before continuing to blabber on and on about how he was so happy his precious "daughter" was home.

…_daughter? _

Before Annabel could question anyone about the fact that Tamaki was calling a boy his "daughter," another hyper-active blond launched himself onto the girl's back.

"Anna-chan~!"

"GAAH! Uh, hey Mistukuni, nice to see you too." She looked up to find his cousin staring down her rather threateningly. She immediately looked away. "Um, Takashi."

"Hi."

Hunny swung around Annabel and landed into front of her. "Ne, ne, Anna-chan! You wanna have some cake now?"

"Uh, well I suppose it's alright if I have a little—"

"Tamaki-senpai, get off of me!" Haruhi struggled to get Tamaki to let go of her.

"Red card, red card!" the twins chanted, not helping in the slightest. "Boss is a pervert! Boss is a pervert!"

The blond turned on the twins, fire coming out of his mouth "I'm not a pervert! I'm a loving father!"

"Boss is a pervert! La-la-lala-laa-la~! Boss is a pervert!"

"I am not! You two are the perverts!"

Kyoya converter-belted into view. "In case you morons haven't noticed, we have a guest in our midst. I suggest you try to redeem whatever dignity you have left and be on your best behavior."

"What? We have a guest?" Tamaki automatically swirled into 'Prince-mode.' He twirled around and produced a rose seemingly out of nowhere. He pointed it to Annabel so the petals were in her nose. Her hazel eyes widened at the sudden gesture.

"I apologize, princess. How wrong it was of me to completely ignore the presence of such a beautiful creature. I'm truly ashamed." What looked like tears began to collect in the corners of his closed eyes. "Please, princess," he put the flower in her hand and grasped both her hands in his. She gasped in surprise. _So…much touching… _"Accept this as a token of my regret."

Annabel blinked. Once. Twice. Thrice.

"Um, apology accepted?" she looked down, obviously uncomfortable at the close physical contact.

"Oh thank you, princess!" Tamaki suddenly pulled her into a tight embrace, much to Annabel's despair. However, despite how much she wanted to scream and kick him in various places, she stood stiff and just waited the hug out, giving a weak, uncertain smile.

"You…you don't have to call me that…" _Damn, at this rate, I'll end up having two panic attacks in one day! _She could already feel her breathing starting to increase.

"Oh, but I do! Because you are a beautiful princess." He finally pulled away and opened his eyes. As Annabel looked up at him, her smile vanished as she saw something that made her blood run cold.

Violet eyes.

* * *

**(1) – the girl with the little cones on the top of her head. The one that was in the Halloween episode.**

**(2) - Haruhi's little fan-club. They're the ones you always see in the anime.**

**(3) - Random name is random**

**(4) - Another random name**

*** - not sure if the Ouran Host Club has a host-choosing process, but I'm pretty sure real host clubs do. (and yes, they actually ****exist) **

**A/N: LONG AND BORING CHAPTER IS LONG AND BORING. lolz, hopefully someone out there is still reading this piece of crap. So once again I leave you with another cliffhanger. Don't y'all just love me? ;P Anyway, exams are coming up, and I've kinda been banned from the internet, so probably no more chapters til Winter Break (which is in like four weeks). :/ I SO SORRY! **

**Laters!**

**Review? X3**


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Happy Christmas Eve to you! lol okay finally exams are over and more time for writing! I realized today that I hadn't done a holiday update yet and i was like "ZOMG I NEED TO DO THIS B4 XMAS TOMORROW!" This chapter was actually half written for a while, but i kinda stopped for a number of reasons. but you don't wanna hear bout that do you? didn't think so.

so consider this my xmas/holiday/yaytheworlddidn'tend present to y'all. enjoy!

Warnings: mild language, implied rape/abuse, my crappy writing skills, etc.

Disclaimer: i own nothing

* * *

Sunshine and Roses Ch 9

**General POV**

The world stood still for a few moments. Time stopped. Any sound that was made fell on deaf ears. For a good five seconds, two people stood locked in an awkward embrace of sorts. Confused pools of violet boor into shocked hazel ones. Everyone froze, not daring to draw breath for fear of setting off some unspoken land mine the tension created.

Annabel simply stared at Tamaki, her eyes wide and mouth slightly agape. His hands were still holding her's which was still holding the rose. She didn't dare move a single muscle. Those eyes…they were exactly the same as…

A wave of realization suddenly drowned the girl as her semi-neutral expression contorted into one of terror. Her eyes widened, the pupils narrowing as they shook.

The rose slipped from her grasp.

_No…it's not possible…how could he…?! _

"Is there something wrong, princess?" the blonde asked innocently, completely oblivious to the fear that the girl was experiencing.

Annabel's muscles tightened. _That name…_

Her body started trembling. Her eyes glazed over, giving them a metallic luster as she stared at something that wasn't there. Her hands were shaking, grasping at each other so tightly that her fingers ached. Breathing was becoming harder and harder, her legs starting to give out from underneath her.

The fact that he was still touching her unnerved Annabel even more. She looked at their entangled hands and realized just how close they were. She tried to rip her hands from Tamaki's grip, but he refused to let go.

"Please, princess. There's no need to be scared. Let me soothe you with my touch." Tamaki continued to try and woo her over, thinking that she was just shy. His grip became slightly tighter.

Annabel's breaths became more uneven, so heavy that they were now audible as she exhales where louder and longer than her inhales. She was shaking all over now, full panic overtaking her mind.

"A-Anna-chan?" Hunny asked softly, slightly scared for the girl.

_Princess, princess, princess…_

The word rang in her head like some insane mantra.

"N-no…" Annabel started lightly clawing at his wrist in a desperate attempt to get away from him. Her eyes were filled to the brim with fear and she had begun whimpering a little. "S-stop…I don't…"

"Tamaki-senpai, I think you should let go of her," Haruhi didn't like the way Annabel was reacting. And neither did the rest of the hosts. Kyoya looked on, having already seen this display before.

"Huh? But—"

"Tamaki." Mori's deep voice cut through. "Let go. Now."

As soon as Tamaki loosened his fingers, Annabel tore her hands away with such force that she stumbled back and tripped on her own two feet. She landed on her butt, clutching her hands close to her chest.

"Annabel…" Haruhi didn't know whether she should approach her or not. But before she could take a step, Annabel's head shot up and looked straight at Tamaki.

His tall figure looming over her was her breaking point. They were so similar it was creepy. It couldn't be _him, _it wasn't _him. He _shouldn't be able to find her. She was off the grid, invisible. She was dead. But, the coincidence was too real. Her vision flashed from the brightly lit music room to the dark prison. Tamaki became _him, _violet eyes gleaming with lust and wanton. He stood in that arrogant stance, whip at the ready. That's when her back started to hurt again.

It had been months since the last time her scars ached. They had healed a long time ago, but the doctor said they were so deep and there was so many of them that they would never fade completely.

Seeing Tamaki standing over her sent pain shooting up her spine. The scars began to sting. The ones on top had a sharper pain compared to the ones underneath. Tears collected in her eyes as gasps of a pain were made from the back of her throat. She hunched over and went into her safety position. It was the position she went into whenever she received a beating. She could feel the leather tongue of the weapon lick her flesh, the warm feeling of blood on her back.

"Haah!" Annabel grasped the back of her neck, the burn beginning to throb…

_She never saw it coming. It was time for their evening meal. But instead of sliding the tin dish of whatever crap they called food through the slot at the bottom of the door, he came in with two of his henchmen. One of them hauled Annabel to her feet. She winced at his grip. _

_The boss smirked as he set the dish on the bedside table. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and began to walk around casually, as if it were normal to keep a girl captive in an unknown location seemly without reason. _

"_You know," he started. "Since you've come, business has gone up quite a bit." She looked at him, not liking how this was starting out. He approached her. "You've been quite the hit, even after only spending one month with us. Some of the older girls don't even get half the orders that you do." She didn't want to hear this. She didn't want to hear his praise about how good of a whore she was. _

_He tucked a piece of tangled hair behind her ear, and continued to stroke down her cheek until he reached her chin. She shivered under his touch. "You deserve a reward for behaving so well. What do you think boys?" The other two nodded silently. _

"_No need. I'd rather not learn what your twisted definition of 'reward' is," she hissed. He chuckled. "You're strong," he let go of her chin and stepped away. "And that will be what brings you down in the end."_

_Annabel spat on his shoes. _

_Rage washed over his face. She internally smirked. But that smirk fell when he gave a devious smile. _

_**Snap! **_

_Within seconds, a blindfold stole away Annabel's vision as her wrists were violently tied together and she was forced to her knees. A large hand grabbed her hair, causing her to sit up. She let out a cry, and received a slap in reply. Annabel began to sweat. _

_Goosebumps formed on the back of her exposed neck as he blew on the skin. She felt him draw patterns with practiced fingers. She gritted her teeth. Oh, how much she wanted to bite those damn things off… _

"_Then maybe it's not a reward you need, but a little reminder." The smell of burning metal hit Annabel's nostrils. She froze. _

No…he wouldn't dare…

_There was a __**hiss **__as the tool was extracted from the fire and was met with the cold air of the room. Annabel started panicking. She desperately fought against the man, but he held her down. With each step that he took, Annabel became more and more frantic. Beads of sweat rolled down her forehead._

_She froze as he pulled the top of her collar down. She could feel heat emitting from the tool, giving her warmth for a few heavenly moments. However those moments quickly turned sour when the hot metal was pressed against her skin._

"_AAAUGH!" Annabel squeezed her eyes shut and gritted her teeth. The brand seared her skin, the smell of her own flesh burning filled the room. She started taking deep breaths and clawed deeply at her wrists, trying to distract her mind from the damage that was being done to her neck. She bit her lip and tried not to scream. _

_The man pressed down harder._

"_AAA-HAA~!" _

_She didn't know when she started crying. Somewhere in the mist of the torture, she had began to give in to her weak side and started sobbing, voicing pleas of "Please, stop," and "It hurts!" _

_After what felt like an eternity to her, Annabel was untied and dropped to the floor. Sobs racked her body as she tried to slow the hiccups that had followed. Lifting a cautious hand, she attempted to finger her burned neck. She hissed in pain. _

_Metal clattered against the concrete floor. A large hand jerked her head up by the chin. Violet eyes twinkled devilishly. A smirk was painted on yellow teeth. Noses were touching. _

"_Have you learned your lesson now, Little One?" _

_Annabel nodded, defeated. _

_A sorrowful expression crossed his face. "I didn't want to do this, you think I enjoy having my Little One go through such pain?"_

_Annabel shook her head. _

_He suddenly pulled her into his chest, caressing her hair. "I'm only doing this to protect you. You need to remember whom you belong to. And this," his fingers lightly grazed the fresh burn, making Annabel whimper a little. "Will do just that. You understand, don't you?"_

_Annabel nodded again._

"_Good." He pulled away and planted a chaste kiss on her forehead. The man stood and placed the dish of food in front of the girl. "You better eat up, before it gets cold." He chuckled lightly, as if the comment was some inside that joke that she wasn't a part of. _

_And without another word, they left. _

Annabel was so deep in her flashback that she didn't realize that she had been speaking aloud. She had covered her ears to try to keep out the voices. Her eyes were shut tight, squeezing out a few more tears. A sob was let out involuntarily and Annabel clamped her hands over her mouth, eyes flying open in realization. Her mind was slammed back into an earlier memory.

_She was cold. A weak hand reached for the thin sheets that were a tangled mess on the bed. Succeeding, Annabel proceeded to wrap the blankets around her exposed body. They had forgotten to give her back her clothes after the last shoot. When they turned the heat off, Annabel noticed that the warmth lingered in the room unless the door was opened. But now the heat had faded away, leaving the naked girl shivering. _

_It was always like this. Wake up, eat, wait, do a short scene, sleep, do a forced photo shoot on some days depending on the schedule, wait some more, eat and then go back to sleep. It was a routine she had gotten used to. _

_The waiting was the worst part. Not knowing when they would burst in, being caught off guard. Not knowing who it would be and what they would do to her. Not knowing anything…_

_The door slammed open. Heavy footsteps approached her. Annabel didn't bother looking up. When had it come to this? When had she stopped caring who it was? When had she just accepted it? _

_A large hand found it's way under her chin and tilted it up. Annabel looked on with dead eyes. The man in front of her gave her a look she knew all too well She knew what she had to do. _

_A few minutes later found Annabel underneath the man as he licked, sucked and kissed up and down her body. Her face showed no signs of discomfort or disgust. That part of her had died a long time ago. It was just something she was used to. _

_Annabel felt the bulge in the man's pants brush her thigh as he moved up to kiss her. She made small moans and mewls to satisfy him. Suddenly, he sat up, panting. He began unbuttoning his pants and sliding them off. She had expected this soon enough. She began to shift and get in a position that provided easy access for the man to have his way with her, but he stopped her. _

_Grasping the top of her head, he jerked her down towards his pleading member. _

"_Suck." He pulled down the rest of his undergarments._

_Annabel's dead eyes finally sparked to life. She stared, frozen with shock. It was…so _big. _How was it possible for someone's dick to get that big? A familiar emotion jolted through her veins, making her shiver. She was scared. _

_But she didn't have much time to be scared, for the man pushed her head in between his legs. Annabel opened her mouth to let out a cry of protest. _

_She almost choked. The man kept his hand on her head, making it impossible for her to pull away. Annabel squeezed her eyes shut at the bitter taste of pre-cum. She did as she was told. The man thrust further into her mouth. She made a grunt noise from the back of her throat. The man began to stroke her hair._

"_That's it…that's a good girl…"_

_Annabel continued sucking. She ran her tongue across the head of his manhood, making the man shudder with pleasure. She hated herself. _

_Without warning, the man released his seed into her mouth. Tears collected in her eyes as she reluctantly gulped down the bodily fluid. The taste stayed on her tongue as she pulled away and her throat burned. She panted, some cum dripping from her open mouth. The man took her face in his hands and forced his lips onto her's._

_When had it come to this? When she become she obedient. When had she become so emotionless? When had she become so…disgusting?_

Annabel had stopped shaking. She had stopped whimpering. She just sat there, hands fallen to her lap, staring at the floor. Her eyes were blank pools of light brown. When the flashback ended, Annabel snapped back to life. Her eyes regained color and she seemed to breath again. But she was far from okay.

The taste of the man's seed still lingered in her mouth and she slapped her hands over her mouth again. Bile rose in her throat. Without a moments notice, Annabel hunched over and retched.

* * *

A/N: well that went...okay. awkward ending is awkward :/ this chapter was...eh. kinda lik the last one, but a little more eventful. i hope people are still reading this!

anyway, happy apocalypta-christma-hanna-kwanza 2012! ((oh the perks of acting camp...))

3 Ayumu


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: I'm sowwy. I suck. T.T I kinda had to lay low for a while cause my dad's pretty much the only person in my family who knows about me writing fanfiction and he came into my room one day to talk about "what not to read"...so long story short, I think he found the rough draft of last chapter on my computer...not fun. Shit's been happening including family probs, friend probs, a mini-depression where I just lost all motivation in things and became useless while question my existence in the world. So...yeah. Here's this really poopy-boring chapter...I'm sorry...*goes off to cry out of shame*

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Warnings: my crappy writing skills, boring-ness, my inconsistent updating habits, Kyoya-senpai

* * *

Sunshine and Roses Ch 10: Aftermath

**General POV**

_Ding dong dong ding, ding ding ding dong. _The weatherman had reported the day as overcast and it seemed that he was right for once. The dark clouds lit up every so often with branches of lightning. Thunder bellowed throughout the sky, startling animals and humans alike. There were all the signs of a storm rolling in, but the clouds seemed to refuse to let any drop of water slip from their grasps. This put Haruhi on a noticeable edge, and she would flinch at the slightest sound of thunder. The dark sky simply annoyed Kyoya as he glared past the heads of his classmates and out the window. Couldn't Mother Nature just make up her mind already; is it going to rain, or not? It almost felt like the clouds were _mocking _him by their presence while the rain was absent.

But then again, it wasn't the rain that was really bothering them.

Their last meeting with Annabel had the Host Club shaken up. None of them have said a word about it, but they all knew it was the one thing on each other's minds. And the seat behind the twins was empty.

Kyoya scanned the room while the hosts went about their usual duties. Sitting at his usual table, he turned his attention back to brightly lit screen of his expensive computer. Annabel's school profile was open. The picture, specifically. His framed eyes quickly scanned over the picture once again, taking in details. Good posture, well-kept hair, small smile, soft eyes. It wasn't anything he hadn't already observed. Time after time, he'd pull open that picture and spend hours staring at it, scanning those blank hazel eyes.

"Annabel…just _who _are you?"

…

Annabel whimpered as she buried herself deeper in the nest of pillows and blankets. She was playing hooky today. She couldn't bear to go to school, not after what happened. How could she have been so _stupid? _So _vulnerable? _What was she thinking, going to a club full of boys on her third day? She figured that if Momoka and that other girls were okay with it, then she'd be fine. But she wasn't like other girls. She was too trusting, especially of people she had spent not even a full day with. That's what got her into this mess in the first place. Annabel had always been too trusting and too naïve for her own good.

And so here she was, running away and hiding from her problems as if they would go away. This felt familiar. It felt a little _too _familiar.

_Dammit, Annie what's wrong with you? You're such an idiot. Completely clueless. You can't even survive through the day without having a breakdown. Useless. Such a burden. Not even your parents wanted you, and now Daisuke is getting fed up. He'll break soon, I can feel it. And then he'll leave you, just like how they all— _

_Knock, knock. _"Annabel? You awake?"

"…"

"There's food on the table…if you want it…"

The sound of retreating footsteps muffled by the hallway carpet seemed to make her heart ache. She curled up even tighter as if that would ease the pain in her chest. Her eyes shut trying to squeeze out the tears that wouldn't come out. At the moment, Annabel just wanted to disappear.

Suddenly, a feeling of rage and anger towards herself took over her mind and Annabel ripped the sheets away from her body. She leapt out of her bed and flew to the wall, screaming as she thrust her fist forward. The plaster gave away under the pressure and crumbled. Annabel panted, her fist still positioned in the hole it had just made. She removed her hand, taking some loose pieces of the wall out of the scratches and looking at the damage. She sighed, seeing the blood on the wall and her hand.

"…shit."

Crossing the room, Annabel cradled her hand and tried to keep any blood from dirtying the carpet. She entered the en suite bathroom and proceeded to clean and properly bandage the wound. When she finished, the girl caught her own reflection in the mirror. She looked awful. Dark bags weighed down on the bottom of her eyes, the color of her pupil was a more muddy brown than its usual warm hazel. Her chestnut colored locks weren't in their normal state of soft waves, but stuffed together in a tangled mess of a bun.

Annabel groaned, placing her forehead on the counter and wrapped her arms around her head. "Damn it…"

The next two days passed quickly with still no sign of the American girl. Kaoru couldn't help but steal glances at the empty seat behind Hikaru every few minutes as if he was expecting her to just appear there. Hikaru, on the other hand, tried with all his might _not _to look in that direction. Haruhi's mind had started to wander during lessons, something that was certainly _not _normal for her. She kept replaying the scene over and over again in her head. Hunny seemed to smile a little less brightly whenever he was eating cake. Mori was quieter than usual (is that even possible…?). Tamaki gestures read less flashy and he was more aware of what exactly he was doing. Kyoya had transferred Annabel's digital school profile to a hardcopy that he carried around everywhere with him. In his spare time, he would take the small photo out and just study it. Without her, the Host Club members were slowing starting to crumble under the pressure of anxiety that came with waiting.

* * *

"Annabel! Breakfast!"

"She's not going to come, you know."

The young man ignored the comment and continued to set up the plate at the far right side of the table. He looked over at the person who made the remark, a smaller boy who sat at the other side of the table. His head was bowed, eyes closed and a piece of bread in his mouth as he ignored the look he was being given. As usual, his face was void of any emotion. The man's gaze shifted to the little girl, no older than five years, sitting across from where he was standing. Her large, dark blue eyes were glued to the doorway of the breakfast room, as if summoning the person she wanted to see to come through it.

The man followed the little girl's stare. After a moment, he tore his eyes away, sighing and letting his shoulders fall. Putting on his strong-big-brother face, he smiled and ruffled the little girl's hair in a reassuring manner.

"Don't worry about her, Kohana. I'm sure big sister's just resting."

"For three days?"

"Toya. That's enough."

Dull green eyes met light brown ones in a silent challenge. In the end, it was Toya, the smaller boy, who looked away. The rest of the meal was silent. Every so often, either a pair of dark blue, dull green or light brown eyes would wander to the doorway. The man's gaze stayed there the longest of the three.

_Please, Annabel. Please be okay. _

_**later that afternoon**_

An unexpected knock sounded through the almost empty apartment. It was loud and clear, a sign that the person was full of purpose. It was surprising; Daisuke wasn't expecting anyone and he didn't think Annabel said anything about having friends over. Then again, she didn't say much to him these days…

Pulling away from his computer, Daisuke stretched and took his sweet time to go to the door. On the way, he took off his reading glasses and set them on the counter and also grabbed his coffee cup at the same time. He yawned, and rubbed one eye while using the other to look through the peephole. What he saw surprised him.

A head of black hair came into view. Next was a pair glasses that sat smartly on the bridge of a nose. The eyes that were behind them were directed toward an expensive looking cell phone that was being held by elegant fingers. A brown leather satchel was tucked under the arm opposite from the one attached to the hand holding the phone. Daisuke figured it was some door-to-door salesman according to the light blue blazer and black slacks. But he did a double take when his eyes landed on the school crest on the blazer…

"Dai, let me goooo~!"

"No! You won't come out of your room, so this is the only way!"

"I don't wanna see anybody! Besides, its not like I have any friends at that school anyway!"

"Well friend or not, this guy is persistent and won't take no for an answer. Believe me, I tried…"

Annabel thrashed around and fought against her older brother's grip. It wasn't so easy in a T-shirt two sizes too big and large sweatpants with a shawl wrapped around her shoulders. Needless to say, Annabel had forcibly been dragged out of the refuge of her room.

"Daisuke!" she cried as they entered the front room. "What's this about, who's—"

Her breath stopped short when the answer to her unasked question stood (quite literally) before her. Her eyes darkened.

"What are you doing here?" Taking a hint from the tone of his sister's voice, Daisuke took one look between the two teenagers and decided he didn't really want to ask at the moment. He tried make himself as unnoticeable as possible as he conveyer-belted out of the room. Kyoya looked up from the book that was sitting in his hands. He did a one-over of Annabel's appearance and smirked at her messy state. "Feeling better, Annabel?"

"Tch." She wrapped the shawl around herself tighter as if to shield her body from his judgmental stare. She watched him with wary eyes as he pushed himself off the wall he was leaning against and began to wander around. A moment of silence passed between them as Kyoya circled the room, trailing his hand on the fabric of the sofa and leaving feather light touches on a few knick-knacks here and there.

"Why are you here, Ootori?"

"Dropping the formalities, are we? You should be more polite to your guests."

"It's _my _house. I can treat my guests however I want."

"And here I thought you'd be a well-mannered lady."

"Sorry to disappoint."

"Ah, yes. Such a shame." His large digits grazed across the surface of a framed picture. It was of a man and woman. _The parents, perhaps? _"What's this?" he inquired, taking the photo into his large hand.

Annabel's gaze hardened. She strode across the room and gently, but firmly, took the picture from his grasp. "That," she placed the object back to its rightful place on the shelf without looking. "is none of your business."

"Is it not?"

Both teens froze as different shades of brown locked onto each other. Both sets of eyes searched the other for any signs of their true intentions while daring the other to be the first to look away. Kyoya searched quickly and thoroughly, but he still could barely scratch the surface. The eyes might be windows to the soul, but this girl certainly knew how to keep the curtains closed.

"No. It is not."

"…Hm. Fair enough."

Kyoya broke away. Annabel hasn't noticed how close they were until she couldn't feel the heat radiating from his body anymore. She suddenly felt cold as she watched him sweep across the room again.

"What do you want, Ootori?" Her question was answered with a sharp _slap _sound of a packet of paper meeting the wooden coffee table. She blinked at the manila folder and then looked back at him.

"What's that?"

"Homework."

Annabel crossed towards him and picked up the folder and started flipping through it. She could feel his eyes on her as she did so. She bent her head downwards so a curtain of her hair fell from her shoulder, shielding her eyes from his. _What's his deal? He keeps staring at me with that_ _look. If he wants to say something, he should just come out and say it! Honestly, it would save us both a lot of time if he would quit dancing around the subject… _

"This is a lot of work."

"You missed three days."

"I wasn't feeling well."

"I'm sure you weren't."

"…"

"At any rate, I advise you to get better soon. Missing a day at Ouran is like missing a week…or two, anywhere else."*****

"You can't order me to get better. It's not something I can control. Either I feel better and come back, or I don't."

"Considering how you're speaking to me at the moment, I would say you've made a miraculous recovery."

"And how would you know? Maybe I get like this when I'm sick."

"Highly unlikely. Furthermore, you don't seem to be expressing any symptoms of illness at the moment. So you should be fine."

"Ugh. You have an answer for everything, don't you?"

"Not everything. Only for the important questions."

"And you think the state of my health is an important question?"

"But of course. You see, despite your sudden arrival, you've made quite an impact on our school."

"…What do you mean?"

"Come by the Host Club sometime, and you just might find out."

And just like that…

He was gone.

* * *

"Heheh, c'mon Onii-chan!"

"Slow down, Kohana. You might trip and fall."

"No I won't! Mimi-chan will protect me!" She waved the little stuffed panda in her brother's face. Toya made the faintest of smiles as he watched Kohana run up the stairs ahead of him. Their building's elevator wasn't working…again. Although their foster parents worked day in and day out and now even Daisuke had gotten a job (an amateur journalist, not exactly where he was expecting his writing career to start off as, but it was as good as it was going to get at the moment) and they were of upper-middle class ranking, that didn't mean their landlord wasn't a lazy little ass of a man who was a little bit too frugal in Toya's opinion and had refused to call in a repair man for the past few months. At least Toya got his daily exercise by climbing 16 flights of stairs to get to his home, coupled with his walk from his school to Kohana's to pick her up. Of course, walking such a long way took a large toll on Kohana, which resulted in the little girl sitting on the stairs less than halfway up until Toya agreed to carry her the rest of the way.

A yelp from Kohana followed by the thumping of a falling body shook Toya out of his thoughts. "Kohana?" he called out, taking the stairs two at a time to hurry to the next landing. "Kohana, you okay?" He turned the corner to see his little sister on the floor, a hand on her knee, in front of an unfamiliar man. From the looks of it, he couldn't have been more than two or three years older than Toya himself (Toya was going to be 15 in about 2 months). He was about to step in when the man knelt down in front of Kohana.

"Owie…"

"Are you alright, miss? You took quite a tumble there." Kohana looked up at the man, her dark blue eyes wide with surprise and wonder and her mouth slightly agape. She had never met a boy who was so…pretty. She hadn't registered the fact that the man was talking to her until he held out Mimi-chan to her.

"Here you go. What's his name?" Huh? How did he know Mimi-chan was a boy?

"Mimi-chan," she mumbled out. Kohana was shy around strangers, and she suddenly wanted Toya or Daisuke there so she could hide behind their legs.

"Mimi-chan? That's a good name for a panda." The little girl took the panda from the man's hand and clutched it close to her. She blinked when she felt a wide, gentle hand being placed on her head. She looked up to see the man's closed eyes behind thin glasses. The man stood up and held out his wide hand to her. She stared at it, contemplating whether or not she should take it because Daisuke and Annabel always warned her not to talk to strangers, but she had already talked to him by telling him what Mimi-chan's name was…and then again it would be impolite of her to refuse the help of one of her elders…was he considered an elder? Surely he wasn't _that _old, but she still had to respect him and–

"Miss? Are you alright? You didn't hit your head, did you?" Oh no, now she's made him worry! She better say something…

"Ah! No!" Kohana grabbed onto the man's hand and allowed him to pull her up. She suddenly felt a new presence and more familiar hand rest on her shoulder.

"Now what do you say, Kohana?" Toya's smooth, seemingly unemotional voice eased the butterflies in Kohana's belly.

"Mh! A-arigato gozaimasu!" she stuttered out, bowing at a 90 degree angle like how Daisuke had showed her. She heard a chuckle and felt Toya ruffle her hair.

Toya straightened up and turned to the man. "Thanks," he nodded to show his gratitude, a small, polite smile gracing his lips.

"Not a problem," the man nodded back before looking down at Kohana. She looked up at him, blinking curiously. "Make sure to be more careful, alright miss?"

"Mm!" She nodded, determination in her eyes that made the man smile.

"Take care."

"Bye-bye!" Toya felt Kohana run out of his grasp to run to the top of the stairs and wave as the man walked away. Toya was unmoving, frozen in position. He couldn't bring himself to turn around, for he was still trying to figure out what exactly had just happened. That man…there was something off about him, a feeling that made Toya want to be by Kohana's side when he, the man, was near. He had never seen the man in the building before, nor had he seen him visiting anyone who lived nearby. Kohana was only in first grade and didn't really understand the concept of "stranger danger." If anything were to happen to her, the only pure soul left in their messed up little family…

"Onii-chan? What's wrong?"

Hiding his concern and suspicions behind soft eyes, Toya just ruffled Kohana's hair again and said, "It's nothing. Are you alright, Kohana? You didn't hurt yourself?" Toya slipped into caring-big-brother mode as he knelt in front of the girl and inspected her knee. There was a small cut. Not very deep and not that big of a deal, but Toya was worried nonetheless.

"Uh-uh!" she chirped as she shook her head from side to side. "Mimi-chan took care of me! And that nice man helped me, too!"

"Yes, Mimi-chan really is a good friend, isn't she?" Toya tried to ignore her comment about the man.

"Mimi-chan is a boy!"

"Ah, of course he is. How silly of me." _A boy panda named Mimi? _"Anyway, let's get going. Daisuke and Annabel will be waiting for us."

"Can Anna-chan play with us?" The cheerfulness in her voice seemed to falter a bit.

"We'll see, Kohana. We'll see."

* * *

Daisuke became uneasy when he heard the apartment door close and the only noise that followed was silence. He slowly rose out of his chair and made his way over to the living room, where he had left the two. Careful not to make his presence know yet, he peeked around the corner to see Annabel…just standing there, staring at the door. Her expression was conflicting: blank and calm, with a hint of confusion.

"What cha' looking at?"

"Wha…?" Annabel blinked and seemed to snap out of her trance. When she refocused and realized the person talking to her was just Daisuke, she seemed a let out a somewhat relieved sigh. "Uh, it's nothing. Just…thinking."

Knowing he wouldn't get a straight answer if he kept pushing, Daisuke just let it go and gestured to the door with his head. "What'd he want?"

She held up the folder, "Homework. He stopped by to give me my homework."

"Who is he? A friend?"

"Don't be stupid—"

"Dai-chan! Dai-chan!"

"We're home."

Kohana came rushing in, not even waiting for Toya to help her out of her little, green raincoat. The little girl's head met Daisuke's knees as she attempted to hug him. The older man immediately put on a smile and laughed.

"Hey there, squirt! How are ya?" He pulled Kohana from his legs and crouched down so they were eye level. As he unbuttoned and helped her take off her coat and rain boots, something on her leg caught his eye. "Oop, looks like you got a little cut. What happened?"

For some odd reason, Kohana seemed excited to tell the story. "Oh, on the way up, I didn't look where I was going and ran into a man! But he was really nice about it and helped me up!"

"Was he?" Daisuke looked to Toya. _Did anything happen?_

Toya looked back. _No, everything was fine. _Daisuke nodded.

"Alright, well why don't you go to the bathroom and put a band-aid on that, okay?" He turned to Annabel. "Hey, help out the little munchkin, will ya?"

"Ah! Anna-chan! You're awake!" Kohana ran to the older girl with excitement shaking her body. "Are you feeling better?"

Annabel couldn't help but smile. "I am, actually. In fact," her eyes darted to the folder and a certain bespectacled boy flashed through her mind. "I think I might even go back to school tomorrow."

* * *

*****this literally describes my school. it's awful. T.T

A/N: Hopefully shit will actually start happening next chapter. I don't knoooooooow! But here's a taste of Annabel's home life...tried to make the OCs interesting...they'll be coming back... Take pity on me and please review...


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